Big family milestone . . . our first tent camping experience!
Sand Fly Welcome
We rolled into Kerr Bay campsite along Lake Rotoiti late afternoon. The lake & surrounding mountains were shroud in overcast skies & clouds, but still delivered a wow factor. It wasn't until we were out of the car that we noticed the insane amount of sand flies zipping all around. Sand flies are pesky insects that bite like mosquitoes. For some unexplained reason they liked me best. Doug & I resorted to our "just-in-case" mosquito face nets (much to the embarrassment of Paige). Dork alert! It didn't stop the sand flies from swarming around us, but it was a godsend to keeping the bites away. Don't I look thrilled?! :)
Tent Assembly
We borrowed a tent and sleeping mats from Andrew & Erika. Our neighbor Paulie had astutely suggested a few weeks ago that we should practice putting the tent up before we left, so that we'd be ready when push came to shove, especially in the face of crummy weather. Unfortunately we'd never gotten around to it, so yesterday was our inaugural assembly. Some parts were intuitive, other bits not so much. In the end we got the tent put together (while dodging duck poo and pesky sand flies), but there were definitely a few quirky bits that we didn't get right. We'll need to watch an instructional video before our next camping stint.
Rain, Rain Not Going Away
We lucked out because the rain held the majority of the time we were actually putting up the tent. It wasn't until the last 10 minutes or so that it started to sprinkle. From there we had steady to pouring rain ALL through the overnight & all the next morning. We were dry & cozy inside the tent and the pitter-patter of the rain was soothing. Unfortunately the soggy weather meant we couldn't do any hikes in the morning before we headed out, as we had wanted to.
Meals in the Shelter
The facilities at the campsite were great. Clean, modern restrooms. A big shelter with a gas stove and washing sinks. We had planned ahead and had a batch of Doug's homemade tomato meat pasta sauce ready to defrost for dinner. Breakfast was tasty oatmeal and coffee. We have a camping stove we'll use when camping facilities aren't available. Especially in the rain, it sure was nice to have the big communal shelter & stove to use instead.
Crazy 8s
Dinner done, pajamas on and teeth brushed, we got cozy in the tent by 8pm. Before we left Hanmer Springs yesterday I purchased a deck of cards. Doug taught us all how to play Crazy 8s. He shared that he used to play Crazy 8s with his grandparents, Great Busia & Great Papa. It was an easy game to learn and just as easy to get hooked on. We played about 10 games straight, enjoying it all the while. Fun to learn a new family game! I bought a set of dominoes the other day at Sally's (Salvation Army) and plan to teach the girls in the coming days so we can add that also to our Summer games rotation.
In spite of the constant rain, soggy tent break-down and inability to hike around the lake/see the area properly, it was a super fun first family camp experience. The girls were total troopers and loved every minute. We'll continue to get the hang of it better in our upcoming family camping stints this Summer!
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